Kickstarter has quickly become one of my favorite sites around, and not just now, but for as long as I’ve been on the internet. Their goal is so empowering, so noble. Every time I visit the site, there is a very good chance I’ll be parting ways with some cash. Whenever I see someone talking so deeply about something they want to make a reality, and how low the bar is to help them do it, it gets me every time. It’s such a simple concept, but the effect is gargantuan.

One of the company’s three co-founders, Yancey Strickler, said that Kickstarter is on track to distribute over $150 million dollars to its users’ projects in 2012, or more than entire fiscal year 2012 budget for the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA), which was $146 million.

Yowza. That’s all at once heartwarming and troubling. It’s troubling how regularly the US stunts arts funding, but it’s also amazing that grassroots efforts like Kickstarter have effectively doubled the money available to artists. Yes, I know, they aren’t the same thing, but it’s a promising development.